October 31, 2007

I think I look a little bit like that spooky girl who climbs out of the well in 'The Ring' movie OR it looks like my head is on backwards,but that's my nose poking through the middle :)

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Don't forget to post your vote in the monthly challenge, check the entries out HERE and either leave a comment, or email me your vote for favourite layout and you could win this month's mystery prize!!

October 30, 2007

Lots of votes have been coming in for the monthly challenge - keep 'em coming, check the entries out HERE and either leave a comment, or email me your vote for favourite layout and you could win this month's mystery prize!!

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A little birdy told me....

Seriously, how cute is this little felt birdy! I stitched her together in Ngaire's make and take class at CROP FOR A CURE on Sunday. It was lovely to see Ngaire again and catch up for a hug. This little birdy design is definitely inspiring me for my Christmas deco's this year.

Speaking of CFAC. It was a wonderful day, the girls at Scrappers Warehouse deserve a big pat on the back for a job well done. They raised over $7500 for the cause! Woohoo!

It was pretty squishy on the tables, so just as well we were sitting among good friends. I was so inspired by being surrounded by such talent that I even kept scrapping when I got home! I have a few fun photos of the day, but I want to put them together like Leeanne did, so I'll try and figure that one out for tomorrow.

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Speaking of Christmas (see above), today I got started on November's card kit and you guessed it, it's Christmas cards. As always, we will be making four cards in the class with all the materials provided in a kit. Here's the first one.....

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And finally for today, here's an update on this Thursday night's NO SCRAPS online class. We are making THREE LAYOUTS and THREE CARDS using just FIVE SHEETS OF CARDSTOCK and THREE PATTERNED PAPERS, plus a few bits and bobs for the finishing touches.

Here's a sneek peak of the projects we'll be making together at the live class this Thursday night 7pm -9pm.

If you would like to join in the fun of an online class, just send me an email or call me at the shop 9770 0247 to book in. I promise you'll love it!!

October 28, 2007

It's amazing how different each of this month's challenge pages are especially when you consider they were all made using the same brand of products. It's always inspiring to see how everyone uses the same supplies differently.

Layout No. 1 - "Abraham"

Layout No. 2 - "All Things Grow Better With Love"

Layout No. 3 - "Thomas"

Layout No. 4 - "That's My Boys"

Layout No. 5 - "Play"

Layout No. 6 - "We Gather"

Vote for your favourite layout by leaving a comment, sending me an email or voting in store for your chance to win a mystery prize. Voting closes on Sunday 4th November. One vote per person please.

The winning layout will be the one with the most combined votes and will win a $20 voucher to spend at Paper Doll.

October 27, 2007

I came in to the shop on Wednesday morning so Peter wouldn't have to work the whole day at the shop. I was expecting some new stock to arrive and I knew it was a lot to ask Peter to enter it all into the system. It was a pretty busy morning, with several customers and one delivery arriving before 12pm (Kaiser Christmas papers and Rhinestones). I entered that lot in the system and printed out price stickers for Peter, but the other order didn't appear 'til after I'd gone (Making Memories Noteworthy range), so I had the poor guy calling me every half hour with a new question about the stock. He is so good to have perservered, even though I could hear the strain in his voice down the end of the phone. :) Thanks Peter, I really appreciate that you were willing to fill in for me so I could get away early. xx

I asked Kim to fill in for me on Thursday morning for coffee at the shop. Word had obviously got around that Kim was hosting coffee morning, because every time she does there is a crowd and Thursday was no exception. Fourteen people came, but it didn't phase Kim, she called on the troups to go and fetch more morning tea and pulled out every extra chair she could find around the place. From what I hear, it was a fun time and the girls enjoyed stocking up on all the new goodies too. hehe. Thank you so much Kim, from the bottom of my heart. I'm just so lucky to have people like you in my life that I can rely on for help whenever I need it.

Now, to the competition.....

The girls were AMAZING, they performed the best they have all year.They won places in all but the last two items of the day, but even those items had wonderful crit sheets, it's just that it is such a close competition between all the clubs competing. We won the free excercises section, the one section I was really desperate for us to win. It's a stunning item and the girls have been second so many times this year, so it was especially sweet. There was a special award for winning that section too and we won a huge trophy (bigger than the main prize!) and our coach had to get up and make a speech at the end of the comp', which made the girls proud. Everyone was just so happy all day and it was great to see the girls finally became a real team, both on and off the stage. People from some of the other clubs even complimented how well our girls were performing on the day. We ended up with HC for March, 3rd for clubs (don't know how they didn't win it, it was perfect), 4th for Rods (lucky to get that one), 3rd for Rythmical Aesthetic and our 1st for Freearm. So even though we ended up coming fourth, it was still a brilliant effort and we were all so proud.

Here they are looking like a bunch of ferocious pirates (NOT!) with Tinkerbell the fairy! Chelsea is in the centre front if you can't recognise her with all the make up on. (Chelsea was so hilarious in this item that I almost wet myself laughing at her!)

By the time the comp' ended and we'd made it back on the bus to the motel it was about 11.30pm, time for a party! Jo and I were staying in a unit at the end of a row, so our room was chosen for the party room. It was a lot of fun, we watched the performance on the DVD and read out the marathon crit' sheets from the judges (there were 3 for each item), drank and ate and made merry. The girls wear a black bobbed wig for one of their items, so all the Mum's wore them to the party. We thought we looked pretty hot, but the girls thought we looked pretty funny! :):) Jo went to bed at 2am and I ended up kicking everyone else out at 3.30am. Chelsea and I shared a bed and she decided to chat until at almost 4am I just had to say "okay, you really need you to stop talking now, because I HAVE to sleep!" lol

Peter came up for the day with Jo's husband and they were prop boys for us. We Mum's usually have to lug all the heavy props in and out of each venue and build them, so it was great not to have to worry about them. Peter also always ends up getting lots of little jobs during the day (picking up our lunches, driving back to the hotel to fetch forgotten headpieces etc) but it's so wonderful for Chelsea that he comes to see her every year. Grandpa has been coming up on the train to see Chelsea perform at Ballarat for years now too and we both really appreciate it. It's such an experience and it's lovely to be able to share it.

Yesterday morning, after a little sleep in, we met up with everyone for brunch at The Boatshed restaurant on Lake Wendouree. This is a become a tradition for us over the last few years. We review the comp', pat each other on the back and make plans for next year before the big drive home. It always feels like such a looong trip home, especially when I'm always sooo tired.

We got back in time for Chelsea to go to work and then we went to pick Bowie up from Leeanne's. Really, by the sounds of the escapades he got up to at her place, I'm surprised she didn't just kick him out the front door and tell him to find his own way home. lol Poor Maddy, she must have been horrified to come home and find him missing. He's such a naughty puppy! Leeanne would have spoiled him so much too (you should see the fur he's left on her couch to prove it!). Thanks Leeanne, Neil and Maddy, it was lovely to be able to leave Bowie with people who love him.

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And now, on to tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to spending a day playing scrapbooking with a great bunch of girls (eleven of us from Paper Doll) at the Crop for a Cure all day scrapbook event in Hallam. Better go, so I can start organising my supplies for the day.

PS. Check back tomorrow evening when I will post this month's challenge pages and the voting will officially begin!

October 22, 2007

I've got loads of images to share with you today. Starting with these stunning roses that Merle brought in for me today, from her garden at home. They are HUGE and so amazingly pink, but the pest part is the scent.....mmmm heavenly. All day long I've been walking past and stopping to smell (isn't that a saying?). It makes me so happy. Thanks Merle! You're a treasure.

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And this is a sneak peek at one of the designs for next weeks NO SCRAPS - online class. This one has almost done my head in, trying to use up all the scraps. We will be making three 12x12 layouts and three cards, using 3 different patterned papers and 5 sheets of cardstock. Live class is next Thursday (1st November) at 7pm and cost $10. Let me know if you want to sign up.

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And here are the catch up photos for my 365 challenge over the last week. This month's theme is every day stuff. I'm a bit hit and miss with the theme, but I try to think about it.

Oct 14 - Every Sunday I read the Sunday Herald Sun (in my PJ's with no face and unbrushed hair) cover to cover.

Oct 15 - Every day I use these three products on my face - morning and night.

Oct 16 - well you know how I like to take photos in the car. lol

Oct 17 - Sitting at the desk (every day!)

Oct 18 - Every day I demand a hug from Harry, luckily he is still very willing, because he gives the best hugs!

Oct 19 - what I must look like to young children - a giant!

Oct 20 - Almost forgot to take my photo, so Chels and I quickly took a very yellow one last night.

And this is today - I was feeling in a silly mood.

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Good news - Not one, but two exciting deliveries are due on Wednesday. Hmmm, maybe I'll have to come to work for just a little bit, just to open up the boxes. hehe

October 20, 2007

I never used to be able to work in front of anyone. I think it's because I like to spend time thinking and changing my mind so much on every project. Truth be told, I'm just not smart enough to be able to hold onto a thought for very long, so once I start chatting I lose my train.......... hehe

That is, until this year. Now I really look forward to every crop night, not only do I have fun chatting, laughing and sharing inspiration with everyone, but I also usually have a finished project at the end of the night. I used to feel an inner conflict when someone made a suggestion about my work, even though for years I've been trying to live by the mantra "create to please only yourself". I've only just learned to listen to my own thoughts and if others don't agree with my choices, well that's okay, I'm still going to do it my way.

Think about it. What kind of scrapper are you? Public or are you still in the closet?

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Last night I worked on the next layout for my 365 album - my first page with 31 photos. It was a challenge to work out how to fit them all on. I ended up printing most of them 1.3" square and printed seven photos 1.5" square. The larger ones were double mounted on chipboard to raise them off the page slightly and give them more prominence. All the photos were sanded (well, der!).

Then I decided to play with the cover of the album. I used the same supplies as before including: Stamp & Number Stickers - Heidi Swapp; Glitter Jigsaw frame - Making Memories. The album is 8.5" x 11" landscape postbound fabric album by American Crafts.

And YES that glitter frame is from Making Memories new NOTEWORTHY range. The order has been processed and is expected to arrive at the shop on either Tuesday or Wednesday. Woohoo!

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Congratulations to Leeanne and Neil whose table won the Carrum Primary School trivia night last night. Hosted by Peter (do I smell a rat? hehe) Just kidding you guys, I know you're just super smart!

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Chelsea and I are off to Ballarat for calisthenics comp' this week. We're heading off on Wednesday and won't be back 'til Friday. Shop boy will be working here on Wednesday. Kim is hosting Coffee Morning (scrap n chat) on Thursday and on Friday I ran out of staff, so the shop will be closed. I'll be back in the swing of it all again on Saturday and the shop will be open as always.

October 18, 2007

We had another lovely session at coffee morning today. I love the chance to catch up with everyone and I really enjoy spending time with all the friends I've made since opening this store (My Scrap Friends).

I was even productive this morning and made myself a new cover for my A5 Smiggle notebook.

I used leftovers from the Making Memories Noteworthy range. The letter stickers are by Paper Salon and were included in my goody bag from Bumble Bee. I usually ALWAYS carry a notebook in my handbag, but I've lost the one I made a few months ago.

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I had a couple of deliveries in the shop today too: X-press double sided tape rolls in 6mm and 3mm (perfect for using with ric rac) and foam tape on the roll. Mono multi glue by Tombow - love this glue - it smells like perfume and works really well. A few stamps, a huge range of MM Word Fetti stickers (an oldie but a good product), a fantastic Christmas ideas book by Scrapbook Trends "Home for the Holidays" and some more fabulous rub-ons and transparencies by Hambly Studios. Plus a few other odds and sods too.

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Next Tuesday morning we are going to take a break from pages and go off road. Due to popular request, we will be making this instead.

If you would like to book in (class costs $15) just let me know and I'll email you a materials list.

October 17, 2007

I'm getting there. Boy, it's crazy how much of a difference taking just one day off can make to the schedule, but it was sooo worth it.

I had a FABULOUS time on Monday at my classes with Bumblebee Crafts. Leonie, Joy and Charmaine from BBC are just delightful and it was fun catching up with some of the other shop girls too. I sat with Wendy from Florewen Craft in Bacchus Marsh, it was so funny when we introduced ourselves. We were the Wendy table!

I got to play with some awesome new products and I'm seriously in love with Making Memories Noteworthy range. I made a couple of 12" layouts and a 6" layout using this range and I especially love the beautiful die cut papers and transparencies. I haven't put the photos on yet, so you'll just have to wait to see them here.

I made a little wedding memento folder, using some lovely products from the Melissa Francis Wedding range. Check out the fabulous silver latch hook thingy!! I must have them.

I also made a cute mini clipboard, using a picture from the Heartwarming Vintage booklet by Crafty Secrets. The set I got is called Wacky and Wonderful vintage images. The mini clipboard is by Collections (they have some really cool new stuff - just keep breathing in and out! hehe) I chose this picture because I knew it would make Peter laugh. Cute huh!

Bumble Bee also gave us a goody bag full of some really cool stuff AND gave us all one of these!!! so spoilt.

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On Saturday night, Peter took Chelsea to the Commercial Radio Awards night at the Palladium at Crown. It was a formal occasion and Chels was so excited and nervous about going. She looked absolutely stunning in her new frock.

Mr Burns - aka. Harry Shearer - presented some awards (that's Jonno Coleman standing next to him - anyone old enough to remember Simon Townsend's Wonder World?) and Shannon Noll belted out a couple of tunes. The highlight of Chelsea's night was getting 'checked out' by a very orange Andrew G! It made her feel very special.

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Card class went really well this morning with lots of fun and the girls went home with some beautiful cards. I will have to convince some of them it's okay to not have straight lines and to leave ragged ends of lace - people need to learn to be messy, like me, hehe.

I am making a few extra kits so if you would like one they are $15 and come with complete instructions and all materials you need to create four cards (see them on the classes blog). Just let me know if you want one as they have been going like hot potatoes!

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Amy is teaching her textured heart class on Saturday afternoon. I know a few people regretted missing out on this class last time around, so if you'd like to have a creative afternoon this Saturday, just let me know. The shape can be altered to anything you like if you prefer too.

October 13, 2007

It's been one of those crazy weeks. Our family only managed to have one meal together this week, on Monday night, then every other night we have had something on. Is it just me or is there really not a lot of options out there for 40 year olds who don't like spaghetti straps? Last night Peter and I went to the Carrum Cowboys best and fairest night and it took me three shopping expeditions to find an outfit. In a last ditched, desperate effort, when I only had 20 minutes spare yesterday morning before work, I finally found the perfect top! I'm really hopeless at dressing up for a big ocassion, I hate it! Don't get me wrong, I love fashion and I'm a very girly girl, but when it comes to special events I usually get it horribly wrong. It was such a relief to finally find something that was dressy, that I would still feel comfortable wearing.

I decided to get a "hair do" for the big night. I haven't been to a hairdresser since late last year, so I decided to try out Leeanne's hairdressers, Hairven in Edithvale. She wasn't kidding about those neck and shoulder massages, it was delightful and they spent an hour and a half pimping my hair, giving me loose curls.

Here we are all dolled up for the night (aka Mr and Mrs Trash) and me with my mate Jo (aka Mrs Jugs). All the guys have nicknames, in fact most of the time we don't even know their real names.

Peter is taking Chelsea to the Australian Commercial Radio Awards dinner at Crown tonight. He asked me to come with him, but it's an even fancier event and I just couldn't face two big nights in a row. Chelsea's so excited and scared. She said "this is my big chance to be discovered"! That girl really cracks me up. Lucky she bought herself two very gorgeous formal dresses lately.

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I don't think I've got the energy to visit the Paperific show this weekend, so if any of you go in, you have to promise to come for show and tell with me during the week. I'm booked in for classes with Bumble Bee crafts in Richmond on Monday, so the shop will be closed for the day. The classes are sponsored by Making Memories and we'll be making projects using the new Noteworthy collection, so I'm really looking forward to that.

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And now for a catch up of my 365 photos for the week.

Monday morning....."Hello Clarice!"

An apple a day. I tried giving up wheat for the week, it was mildly successful. hehe

On Wednesday, shop boy came to work in the afternoon, so I could go shopping.

I didn't manage to find the perfect outfit to wear to Presentation Night but on Thursday, I wore my new (bargain!) top I found on my shopping trip.

Last night, painted and primped for the big night.

12.45am this morning, seriously craving potato chips on the way home and starting to wonder how good I'm going to feel at work today. (not so great - hehe.)

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And last, but not least. My God son Lachlan is 18 today and my big sis Jenny is having a birthday (age undisclosed) tomorrow.